Do you all need to read the rosary (from a cheat sheet like me) or do you have all the prayers of the rosary memorized? I still don't know Hail Holy Queen or the prayer after that "O God, Whose..." I also need to read "I believe in God, the father almighty..." because if I don't I get it mixed up with the other one... know what I mean? I want to memorize these prayers... but I haven't yet... anyone else want to admit to not knowing all their prayers

I took my 3 mile walk today and prayed the rosary (I take a pamphlet so I say it properly) and after I was done I still had a ways to walk so I decided to memorize Hail Holy Queen... which after another 2 miles I had it down

I am surprized at how quick my boys have learned their prayers (they are 8 and 5) they learned them so quickly I decided to see if they could learn psalm 23... which they both know by heart... awesome!

Have you ever experienced a sinking feeling when the 50+ beads stretch out before you? To my mind, it can sometimes be daunting to repeat the Ave Maria fifty times, especially when I feel that I am not able to meditate properly on the Mysteries. Sometimes I get a bright flash. Mostly, I don't.

_________________A teacher who is not dogmatic is simply a teacher who is not teaching. (G.K. Chesterton)

It is to idols that men turned (and turn) for quick and literal answers. (J.R.R. Tolkien)

The purpose of the Rosary, over a period of time which differs with individuals, is to bring them to a higher form of prayer.

When saying the Rosary privately one can just stop saying the Hail Marys and allow the Holy Spirit to lead them in pondering and resting in the Mystery. In that instance, to do so would be the better way.

The purpose of all types of prayer is to help bring one into closer union with the Lord.

Pondering is when we use our thoughts and reasoning, and it can increase our awe of the mystery.

Resting is when the Lord allows us to just bask in some insight He may give us, without using our own thoughts and reasoning.

If I may give an example from St. John of the Cross that goes something like this:( My description)

Imagine walking upstairs to an open door where God's Light is streaming through and He desires to illuminate and purify us with His Light. The "walking upstairs" refers to the thinking and reasoning process.

If, as we are doing this, He brings us to the top of the stairs and begins to enlighten us and give us rest....should we then go to the bottom of the stairs and start climbing them again, or accept His loving invitation to rest in His Love and Wisdom?

Do you all need to read the rosary (from a cheat sheet like me) or do you have all the prayers of the rosary memorized? I still don't know Hail Holy Queen or the prayer after that "O God, Whose..." I also need to read "I believe in God, the father almighty..." because if I don't I get it mixed up with the other one... know what I mean? I want to memorize these prayers... but I haven't yet... anyone else want to admit to not knowing all their prayers

It took me a while to get the Apostles Creed down because as a child I learned the Nicene Creed and I kept wanting to add all the flourishes of the Nicene Creed to the Apostles Creed.

But I had to memorize Hail Holy Queen when I came back to being a church-going, rosary-praying Catholic again.

I just said it over and over like 10 times each night for a week, until I had it down. With a heads-up to Mary that this wasn't prayer but learning the prayer....didn't want to bother her with the redundant memorization process...

By the way, with so many beautiful prayers for a Catholic to choose from, it's near impossible for you to know all of them!

_________________Formerly known as ElizabethF

You cannot have Jesus as your brother and then reject Mary as your mother. You cannot love His Father as your Father, and then refuse to love His mother.

Is it okay to pray the Rosary while doing things around my apartment, without actually having the Rosary chain?

I have loud neighbors that live upstairs. I'm trying my best to deal with it. I've been trying to keep myself busy by doing work around the apartment. But that wasn't helping too much. So I decided to start saying the Rosary, in hopes of getting strength to deal with this and to grow better understanding and patience.Is this okay? I don't want to be disrespectful while doing the Rosary. I'm paying attention to what I'm saying, just I'm also doing other things at the same time.... again, I don't actually have the Rosary beads while doing this.

Thanks for any guidance.

_________________For who we are and what we'll be/ I'll sing your praise eternally/ the miles we've shared I'd trade but few/ they're the ones that kept me away from you.

Is it okay to pray the Rosary while doing things around my apartment, without actually having the Rosary chain?

I have loud neighbors that live upstairs. I'm trying my best to deal with it. I've been trying to keep myself busy by doing work around the apartment. But that wasn't helping too much. So I decided to start saying the Rosary, in hopes of getting strength to deal with this and to grow better understanding and patience.Is this okay? I don't want to be disrespectful while doing the Rosary. I'm paying attention to what I'm saying, just I'm also doing other things at the same time.... again, I don't actually have the Rosary beads while doing this.

Thanks for any guidance.

I think it's great that you say the Rosary while doing work around your apartment! And I had to smile when you mentioned that you have loud neighbors upstairs and that the Rosary can give you more understanding and patience. It made me think of this:

St. Therese, (The Little Flower), while praying in the Carmelite Monastery sat near an elderly nun that allowed her Rosary beads to constantly rattle against the wood of the pew in front of her. St. Therese, the saint of the "little way", said she suffered through that and offered up that racket to the Lord, for love of Him, even when it prevented her from concentrating on her prayers. That was a prayer in itself!

yesterday after church my friend gave me a shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, she travels from home to home in our parish, families pray the rosary to her and she performs miracles... well, last night we said the rosary together as a family (which we have never done) ... my husband is protestant (but goes to church with us) and I was happy that we were all saying it together... by the end I was the only one saying it aloud (I have 2 little ones who were overwhelmed by the end ) but they were all still at the table, awesome! I told my husband we were praying the rosary for him. he's been out of work for 8 months.This morning I was helping clean our parish' school kitchen (&I got free food!) and my husband called, "I got the job!" WOOOOOHOOOOO!!! A little while ago I got home from prayer group at church and said, "I am going to pray rosary in the kitchen, is anyone going to jon me?" and the kids grumbled... my husband said, "We are ALL going to do the rosary as a family" Praise the Lord!!!

_________________Whence are we to find words enough fully to tell the happiness of that marriage which the Church cements, and the Eucharistic oblation confirms, and the benediction signs and seals; which angels carry back the news of to heaven, which the Father holds as ratified? -Tertullian

I've been struggling for years dealing with noisey neighbors (hopefully getting a house soon). Nothing has worked in helping me be patient. To a large part because I'm not patient with the techniques I've tried to implement.And it has been a constant strain on my marriage, my general level of happiness, and numerous other aspects of my life.

Praying the Rosary has worked miracles. I wish I could explain it more, but the stimulus (the noise) has relatively no impact on me. Sometimes I still get annoyed, but it's not debilitating. I know this sounds over the top, but, it bothered me that much. Too the point where I would lose interest in doing things. No longer.

_________________For who we are and what we'll be/ I'll sing your praise eternally/ the miles we've shared I'd trade but few/ they're the ones that kept me away from you.